Morocco and Türkiye 2026

  Our last day and night in Istanbul, we know we should be energetic and get out, we are tired tho.   Sleep in only because breakfast is at 9, then out amongst the crowds.  We walk to the old Spice markets to complete our shopping: tea and cups for same. No negotiation as fixed price, good one though.  Out to the streets around the market where we found an electronic store. Stuart has been looking for an adaptor thingie. He found that and i found an external battery, which i wanted.  It came in an Apple box but the chap was quick to assure me it wasn’t Apple, i do love honesty. Return on the T1 tram to Hippodrome    for a çay then home.  Repack our gear, before a beer then dinner.  Dinner round the corner, thats about all we have left.😁 We’ll finish this fabulous story here as its time to head to London to hang out with Harry and Tina for a few days before heading home. Turkey as the second option you have been fabulous.  Your food is v...

  And we’re off, leaving Canakkale behind on our last Turkish bus trip. Bit delayed leaving as the bus was late arriving. They shouldn’t have stopped for that last cigarette break.🫣 As i write a bus hostess is already delivering coffee, it should be a good day as we head back to Istanbul. We spot a great looking bridge in the distance and to our delight we will end up crossing it. It’s the Canakkale bridge which was built in 2022 at a cost of 2.5 billion euros. I love a bridge and this one did not disappoint and it worked. Absolutely non eventful trip, couple of stops and one more coffee from our hostess, who is a doppelgänger for Gomez from Adams Family. Arrived into a crazy Istanbul about 3.30pm and into one of the strangest otogaris we’ve been to. We went underground, which was dark and dusty and there were all sorts of shops. Tailors, shoe and cloths shops and also the mechanics and washers for the buses. Weird. Dropped off up top thankfully and organised a Taksi which took us...

  Big day, early start firstly to breakfast, actually started on time!!  We travel first to Troy and learn much about the history of this fascinating place. Much of what we think we know is based on mythology written centuries after, with many conflicting points.  That includes the horse!!  The town dates from before 3000BC to 600AD. Basically more than 9 walled cities built on one another: look it up if you are interested.  Our group then splits up, we go back to çhankkale for an intercontinental ferry trip to Europe, across the Dardanelles.  Meet others then on to Gallipoli, we are told about so much history and the clusterf’s on both sides, the role Ataturk played, all for no gains and half a million casualties.  We always wondered how Türkiye so readily accepted aussies back… long story.  We saw many sites( lone pine, shrapnel gully, ANZAC cove, Chinuk hill) and were lucky to see the changing of the guard at the 57 th regiment Turkish monument...